E-Discovery Market Snapshot
Measuring and Evaluating In-House
E-Discovery Legal Spend
A growing number of In-House E-Discovery Managers and Attorneys are beginning to address and discuss their E-Discovery Legal Spend. As the high cost involved with managing and storing electronic data becomes more apparent, the ability to track, analyze, and report on granular cost components becomes increasingly important.
The Cowen Group’s Market Snapshot, Measuring and Evaluating In-House E-Discovery Legal Spend describes the current capabilities of In-House E-Discovery Managers to monitor this critical spend component. Launched during our April 21st Thought Leadership Breakfast Roundtable in New York – which featured 22 Corporate E-Discovery Managers – our survey results sampled ~40 In-House E-Discovery Managers and ~100 Law Department decision makers from coast to coast.
The Cowen Group would like to express our appreciation to everyone who participated in our survey, particularly those who were active in helping us develop questions.
Thought Leadership Breakfast Roundtable April 21st, 2009
Featured Speakers
Martha Mazzone Patrick Oot
Vice President and Associate Counsel Sr. Counsel & Director of E-Discovery Fidelity Investments Verizon, Inc.
Warren Solow Deena Coffman
Vice President of Information Management Former Director of E-Discovery Viacom Johnson & Johnson
Moderated By David Cowen
Managing Partner The Cowen Group
These findings are proprietary information of The Cowen Group and cannot be replicated without our written permission.
E-Discovery Market Snapshot
Measuring and Evaluating In-House
E-Discovery Legal Spend
Our initial findings indicate several consistent themes:► Nearly all (94%) of In-House E-Discovery Managers are formally charged with reducing E-Discovery costs.
► Nearly all (92%) of In-House E-Discovery Managers do not know – on a granular level – how their E-Discovery legal spend is allocated.
► A significant number (75%) of In-House E-Discovery Managers report directly to the Office of General Counsel.
► A majority (66%) of In-House E-Discovery Managers do not have the tools, dashboards or formal methodologies for tracking cost categories such as collection, processing, hosting or review.
The role of the In-House E-Discovery Manager grew out of individuals in several corporations who – independent of their corporate directive and each other – took it upon themselves to identify the expenditures in specific cost-categories.
Typically armed with only an Excel spreadsheet and a backlog of invoices, these people had no alternatives to simply logging the hours. However, as a result of their efforts, many identified possible cost savings opportunities ranging into the millions of dollars.
These types of numbers earned In-House E-Discovery Managers a voice in the litigation response process.
Cost Savings = Corporate Buy-in = Education & Effective Execution
These findings are proprietary information of The Cowen Group and cannot be replicated without our written permission.
E-Discovery Market Snapshot
Measuring and Evaluating In-House
E-Discovery Legal Spend
In-House E-Discovery Managers Education
MBA 21% Other 21% JD 44% Paralegal Certificate 7% Computer Science7%
Software Used to Track and Analyze In-House E-Discovery Legal Spend
Datacert 17% Internal Process 17% Sharepoint 17% None 25% Spreadsheet 24%
Corporate E-Discovery Managers' Time in Role 1-2 yrs. 33% 3-5 yrs. 33% 5+ yrs. 17% <1 yr. 17%
There are three particularly interesting consistencies:
► A majority of In-House E-Discovery Managers (65%) have advanced degrees, while few AmLaw E-Discovery Managers (~23%) have advanced degrees. ► Few In-House E-Discovery Managers (17%) have held their position for more than 5 years. These are the same respondents who are least likely to have advanced degrees.
► Almost half of In-House E-Discovery Managers (49%) either rely on Excel spreadsheets or have no tools for the tracking and analyzing of E-Discovery Legal Spend.
These findings are proprietary information of The Cowen Group and cannot be replicated without our written permission.
E-Discovery Market Snapshot
Measuring and Evaluating In-House
E-Discovery Legal Spend
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% Percent Tracking per Gigabyte per Custodian per Page per Case C o s t M e tr ic
E-Discovery Legal Spend Cost Metrics
Nearly every In-House E-Discovery Manager tracks the following types of cost:
► Cost per Gigabyte
But significantly fewer track other metrics, such as: ► Cost per Page Reviewed
► Total Cost per Case ► Cost per Custodian
Upon examining individual responses, The Cowen Group determined that the same E-discovery Managers who track a variety of metrics are also the ones who have concepts of the granular cost of E-Discovery for their organizations.
These findings are proprietary information of The Cowen Group and cannot be replicated without our written permission.
E-Discovery Market Snapshot
Measuring and Evaluating In-House
E-Discovery Legal Spend
100% (-0%) 33% (-17%) 22% (-8%) 45% (-5%) Outside Counsel 73% (+6%) 82% (-10% 82% (-10%) 45.5% (-5%) Vendor/Consultant 64% (+6%) 64% (+31%) 82% (+24%) 100% (-0%) Internal Review Hosting/ Production Processing Collection
Where Will Your E-Discovery Work Be Performed in 1 Year?
100% (-0%) 33% (-17%) 22% (-8%) 45% (-5%) Outside Counsel 73% (+6%) 82% (-10% 82% (-10%) 45.5% (-5%) Vendor/Consultant 64% (+6%) 64% (+31%) 82% (+24%) 100% (-0%) Internal Review Hosting/ Production Processing Collection
Where Will Your E-Discovery Work Be Performed in 1 Year?
100% 50% 30% 40% Outside Counsel 67% 92% 92% 50% Vendor/Consultant 58% 33% 58% 100% Internal Review Hosting/ Production Processing Collection
Where Is Your E
-
Discovery Work Currently Performed?
100% 50% 30% 40% Outside Counsel 67% 92% 92% 50% Vendor/Consultant 58% 33% 58% 100% Internal Review Hosting/ Production Processing Collection
Where Is Your E
-
Discovery Work Currently Performed?
When we asked the questions:
Where is Your E-Discovery Work Being Done?
And
Where Will Your E-Discovery Work Be Done in 1 Year?
The Cowen Group identified some very interesting trends developing.
These findings are proprietary information of The Cowen Group and cannot be replicated without our written permission.
